Law of Talos
by HawkeyeNextGen
Summary: Law of Talos is a story based on the deviantART competition by Sins of Angels. This story ties the three different lives of a Mannequin named Climber, a Resin Pirate named Karl, and a possessed cyborg called Spoiler/Black Ace. (P.S. This story shall be uploaded with new chapters. However it is uncertain when I will publish the next one.)


Law of Talos

Based on the Deviantart Competition by Sins-of-Angels

Prologue

The grand city of Taitle on the isolated world of Nevara, once bustling with life and thought and steam-powered inventions, stands deserted save for the stray passing inventor salvaging scrap metal from its workings and a stubborn old man who has lived on the same plot of land his ancestors have all his life. He didn't mind the old abandoned buildings, the winding Victorian architecture that was crumbling in places, or the almost rhythmic release of steam from street vents. No one knew where the vents went, or why they were there, or even how to properly begin to repair the city's maze of architecture to make it living again, but the vents are there, leading to nowhere, and the city is there, and had, at one point, worked for the people in it. All it works for now, other than the old man, were the little robots, left behind by careless people passing through and repaired by the old man, set free to wander the city and make their own homes for themselves. The city itself is like a time capsule, fallen into disrepair but stuck in this era of steam-powered technology, stuck in the same culture it has been since it was last bustling with signs of the lives of its citizens because of the influence of a strange new physical law, dubbed Law of Talos by its discoverer, the old man. The city functions only on steam power, despite its neighbors having modern technology already. Said technology stops working within the city grounds, and there is a presence that is nothing short of magical in the air. The Law of Talos has been around ever since the first person had set foot in the city, it seemed, even while it was bustling with the life of its inhabitants, before it was abandoned. Since then, the city has been unpopulated. That is, until now. Now the town is overrun by people scouring every inch of the city for all the broilers and gas tanks and engine parts that have been left lying around, and building high glass domes on metal stilts, all in preparation. The town was going to be alive again, but not for its usual purpose. It would live for a tournament.

The stubborn old man had finally done it. In his workshop stood the world's first, and, indeed, only wishing machine. Steam and smoke poured out of the contraption, and things spun at seemingly random times, and a small gauge on the front, going from 1 to 10, was now pointing at 1. Whatever it was that was making the machine work (for the old man wasn't sure of it himself.) was allowing for one more wish. And the stubborn, but nice and friendly old man, had decided that now since he had hair again and had his fun wishing, it was time to give the last wish, however big or small it may be, to someone who is willing to go to any length to prove he/she deserves it. And it was his nephew, hanging around the shop one day, who suggested the idea of a tournament. So the city had become alive once again, bustling with the sound of workers preparing for said tournament, ready to welcome the competitors and building observation domes for the spectators at either end of the city. Because, as the nephew pointed out, a little monetary profit never hurt anyone.

The idea was simple. People who heard of this machine, be it by technology like the internet or carrier pigeons were told to gather in the city if they were interested. Bring yourselves, it said. Bring courage and the will to win. And bring your greatest desire, because fulfilling it is your prize. Once it starts, step outside Taitle, and you're out. Be defeated by your set opponent and you're out. And when you're out, you forfeit everything you have collected over the course of the tournament to the winner of your match. Since it wouldn't be a proper tournament in the old man's eyes if it didn't allow for some inventiveness, he will give each contestant a set of tools, the most unique and important of these being the boiler, the gas tank, and the engine parts. Metal, pipes, chimneys, everything else could be scavenged. But those parts you could only get by defeating your opponent, and it is with those parts that you can build bigger things, or many small things, whichever you prefer. And it is those parts you forfeit when you lose a match. Do you have to use the kit? No. Of course not. The old man simply wanted to give everyone the fair option to. Just keep those vital parts close, because even if you don't want them, leaving them would give a huge advantage to whoever finds them. The goal is to be the last one standing, brought in front of the wishing machine and given the chance to make your deepest desire come true.

This was the competition of the Endzone Tournament.

Chapter 1:

Entering Taitle

The sun's rays shot through the dense harbor fog in the city of Taitle. It was about 1:45 pm as the light bouncing of the building gave the city's appearance from above a color of golden brown. Inside a warehouse, an old man wearing a lab coat was handing a canister to another person. The canister's purpose for the moment was unknown. The person walked away holding the canister passed on to her as the old man waved goodbye. Turning around he put his hands behind back and walked on as if he was thinking about what possibly to do next. The warehouse was full of tools and materials. He stopped and found what he was looking for as his feet grinded on the dusty floor. He reached up and grabbed it, but as soon as he was about to pull it down, a voice from above said, "Hey, what's up doc?" The old man screamed and back away sharply as he dropped the thing he was looking for. He looked up and saw a boy possibly in his mid-20's on the top shelf which happened to be empty. The boy had a graze that appeared gray on his left eye, he had blonde hair, was wearing a yellow hat, a white collared shirt, brown boots, and a long orange 70's overcoat. He also saw a Raven next to him. The boy's name was Karl the Pirate.

"Holy moley son!" said the old man. "How did you get in here? You are a contestant, aren't you?"

"I think I am. Sorry for the lack of subtlety. I didn't want to scare you to death really." Karl responded. "So, I've heard you like... machines?"

"Indeed." the old man replied. "They've been the meaning of my since a long time ago."

"Then I take it you can build some rather peculiar ones?" said Karl.

"You don't have to be so elusive, son. The wishing machine isn't a governmental secret!"

"Should be. Who knows what kind of evil-doer could try to kill you and steal this wonder?" said Karl trying to look innocent.

"No, that's impossible. Besides, I have been living here all alone during some time. I have my ways."

"Not even a little? I thought you were trying to help."

"That I am." said the old man as he started walking away. "Speaking of which, I have something for you." Karl leaped down from the shelf. The old man turned around to give Karl a tank of some sort.

"Here, it's a gas tank." The old man said. He turned around and gave him another. "The boiler." Then he gave Karl a couple more which made him tumble over a pile of metal cylinders. "And everything nice! Those are the ingredients to create a machine!" Karl got back on his feet with all scraps in his hands.

"How am I supposed to fight and hold these things at the same time?" Karl asked.

"That's the fun part! Surprise me!" said the old man.

"If I wanted material resources at all, I'd be more interested in an energy supply." responded Karl.

"Energy?"

"Hey, I'm not a mole. I can sense it close by." said Karl. "I just didn't find any type of energy storage around your so-called lab in a warehouse."

"Oh, you must be talking about the Law of Talos." said the old man.

"Law of who?" asked Karl.

"The Law of Talos." the old man replied. "It's what makes everything work in this city... and what makes everything that's outside the city stop as well. Anyways, I hope you enjoy your stay at Taitle. The city can look hostile, but my nephew is planning to reconstruct Taitle with the tournament. Hopefully, it'll be a good place to live in after all this ends." The old man then instructed Karl to bring the boiler, gas tank, and the other tools given to him to place them at a specific location. However, as Karl got a good distance away from the warehouse, he forgot everything the old man told him to do and dropped the stuff he was carrying on purpose. Then he walked on about his business.

"Too bad Arma." Karl said. His pet Raven's name was Arma. "We'll have to find another source. This scarce thing in the air won't stand one day." Arma stared at him.

"No, I have no idea." Karl announced to the Raven. "But it's alright. Being outside of that dreadful amusement park is itself a source of energy! Now we are free to destroy that human's plan and make this place an eternal ghost town!" he shouted with joy. Arma flapped her wings. "Yes, I know Arma, I know. Focus on our task." said Karl to the bird. "But if that wishing machine is just a bad joke, at least we'll have some fun! Right?" He didn't notice that behind him, a hand clacked down on a pill dispenser. Someone was watching over him.

Now in case you are wondering why he is so happy about killing everyone is he had a horrid history in the past. Even though he is from stone, pretty much everyone where he came from was made of stone. But when Karl was a little boy, all he could remember was his entire world being blown to smithereens one day. During that time, a thief killed his parents, a tragedy that changed his life forever. But the person who rescued him remains unknown. The next time he became conscious, he found himself in an abandoned amusement park on an island. This place used to be a special attraction and now it is a home for anyone who survived a fate that would mean the end of them, including a human. The amusement part was called Pirate's Island and this is where Karl was inspired to become a pirate, regardless that he doesn't like to be called one. But he still was never able to recover from the incident at his home. He wanted to go explore the world for so long, but he was never able to for it would possibly mean the end of him. The fact that the incident changed him would greatly affect him in the outside world. But things weren't getting any better. The longer he stayed, the more and more he wanted to go outside. But there were a few souls in that park which kept reminding him to not kill. Plus the reason he wasn't allowed to go outside was also for his own safety. But as he grew, those memories became more and more meaningless. One day, he successfully escaped.


End file.
